Vegas Golden Knights vs Colorado Avalanche Prediction, Preview and Odds - 05/22/2026

Game Time: 8:00 pm ET, Friday, May 22, 2026

Venue:  Ball Arena, Denver, CO

Where to Watch:  ESPN

DraftKings:  Moneyline:  Knights +160, Avalanche -192; Over/Under:  6.5 goals

Bet365:  Moneyline:  Knights +160, Avalanche -190; Over/Under:  6 goals

BetMGM:  Moneyline:  Knights +155, Avalanche -190; Over/Under:  6 goals

Vegas Golden Knights:  39-26-17 (1st place, Pacific Division)

Colorado Avalanche:  55-16-11 (1st place, Central Division)

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Vegas Golden Knights:  8-2-0 last 10

Colorado Avalanche:  8-2-0 last 10

The Golden Knights are entering the playoffs with 95 points, a 39-26-17 record overall, and they were 19-14-8 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a win against the Colorado Avalanche in their last game, winning that one on the road 4-2. Brett Howden, Dylan Coghlan, Nic Dowd, and Pavel Dorofeyev each scored 1 goal for them in that one. Ben Hutton, Brandon Saad, Colton Sissons, Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner, Rasmus Andersson, and Tomáš Hertl each led the team in assists with 1 while Shea Theodore led the team in shots on net in that game with 5. Carter Hart was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 2 goals on 38 shots with 36 saves and a .947 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 265 goals this season averaging 3.2 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 250 goals against them allowing 3 goals per game.

The Avalanche are entering the playoffs with 121 points, a 55-16-11 record overall, and they were 26-9-6 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a loss against the Vegas Golden Knights in their last game, losing that one at home 4-2. Gabriel Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin each scored 1 goal for them in that one. Devon Toews, Nathan MacKinnon, and Ross Colton each led the team in assists with 1 while Nazem Kadri led the team in shots on net in that game with 5. Scott Wedgewood was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 3 goals on 27 shots with 24 saves and a .889 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 302 goals this season averaging 3.7 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 203 goals against them allowing 2.5 goals per game.

The current betting odds have the Avalanche listed as a favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Avalanche have looked great in their games this season with their 55-16-11 record overall which had them right at the top of their division in the West with the best record in the entire NHL. They have looked great on home ice too with their 26-9-6 home record this season. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights have looked good in their games this season with their 39-26-17 record overall which had them right at the top of their division in the West. They haven't been a great road team though with their 19-14-8 road record this year. This is game 2 of a 7-game series between the 1st seeded Avalanche from the Central Division and the 1st seeded Golden Knights from the Pacific Division for the Western Conference Finals of the NHL playoffs. The Golden Knights are entering this game with a 1-0 series lead after winning game 1 by a score of 4-2. The Golden Knights came out really strong in the 1st game of this series and they got the job done. They played a tight defensive game to start which led to them scoring the first goal and they never looked back once they took a lead. Now they have flipped the home advantage in their favor and they aren't going to bring that same effort in this one. The Avalanche have been rolling in the playoffs and they are 8-2-0 in their last 10 games. That was only their 2nd loss of the playoffs and their 1st loss at home, so they are going to answer that loss with a better game here. They don't want to go to Vegas down 2-0 either, so they are going to bring their best effort to tie this series up and they will look like the team that wants it more in this game. Look for the Avalanche to bounce back with a better effort and even up this series with a better game from start to finish. The best way to place a bet here is on the Avalanche to win this game and on the puckline. 

Golden Knights Avalanche Prediction:  Our NHL Pick for Friday, May 22, 2026 (8:00 pm ET start time) is Avalanche 4 Knights 1.

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Vegas Golden Knights: 151-126 (-22.5 units) on the moneyline in all games. 75-80 (-24 units) on the moneyline against explosive offensive teams - scoring 3+ goals/game. 67-66 (-11.8 units) on the moneyline when playing against a team with a winning record. 30-18 UNDER when playing against a good team (Win Pct. 60% to 75%). 20-11 UNDER against good defensive teams - opponents average 26.5 shots on goal or less.

Colorado Avalanche: 91-43 (+6.8 units) on the moneyline as a home favorite. 87-42 (+6.1 units) on the moneyline in a home game where the total is 6 or more. 46-21 (+13.2 units) on the moneyline revenging a same season loss vs opponent. 26-19 UNDER as a favorite of -200 or less. 10-5 UNDER revenging a same season loss vs opponent.

Vegas Golden Knights:  M. Stone (RW) Day To Day - Lower-Body. J. Lauzon (D) Out - Upper-Body.

Colorado Avalanche:  C. Makar (D) Day To Day - Undisclosed.

“To come into this building against that team in this type of situation where they try to kind of blitz you, I thought our first period was good. It was a good road period for us. Listen, we had some major inconsistencies. We didn’t play a flawless game by any means. We got some timely goals, got some great saves at key times. We have work to do. Nice to get the first one under your belt and get a win, but we have plenty of work to do when we’re playing against that team.” - John Tortorella after his team’s win against the Avalanche in the 1st game of this series on Wednesday. 

“I thought it was good at times and not good enough at others. Like the start of the game, good energy, good pace, thought we faded away for 20 minutes in there. I’d like to see the urgency and the relentlessness that we had in the third period earlier in the game, for longer stretches. Lots to improve upon for our group going into Game 2. You’ve got to find the hunger earlier in the game. We all know the importance of these games and every game, especially next game now with it being our second home game down one. It shouldn’t be hard to sort of drive the urgency, and there’s a few things that are building blocks of our team and our team identity that I think we can do more consistently to help us earlier in the game.” - Jared Bednar after his team’s loss against the Golden Knights in game 1 of this series on Wednesday. 

LW Ivan Barbashev

C Jack Eichel

RW Pavel Dorofeyev

LD Brayden McNabb

RD Shea Theodore

G Carter Hart

LW Gabriel Landeskog

C Nathan MacKinnon

RW Martin Necas

LD Devon Toews

RD Sam Malinski

G Scott Wedgewood

Points: Jack Eichel (90)

Goals: Pavel Dorofeyev (37)

Assists: Jack Eichel (63)

GAA: Akira Schmid (2.59)

Points: Nathan MacKinnon (127)

Goals: Nathan MacKinnon (53)

Assists: Nathan MacKinnon (74)

GAA: Scott Wedgewood (2.02)

Coaches:

Vegas Golden Knights: John Tortorella (Interim)

Colorado Avalanche: Jared Bednar (10th season)